April Morning

I really thought this might be good but it was an overdone, sappy, made for TV soap opera about the Lexington-Concord battle. While some large facts were accurate, it was a pretty, fictionalized, maudlin piece of crap. Molasses moves faster.....in January. Awful.

On April 18, 1775, along a Massachusetts road, Solomon Chandler is secretly delivering shot and gunpowder to colonists who want to stand up to the British. He is captured and beaten by Redcoats.

The people of Lexington are divided on how exactly to handle the situation, but if the British are coming, they want to be ready. 15-year-old Adam, whose father does not respect him, wants to join the militia. Amazingly, Adam's father does not try to stop him. His mother fears Adam will be killed if the circumstances lead to gunfire.

Eventually, the people are warned that, in fact, "The British are coming!" (This exact quote is not in the movie.) The men have to be ready for anything. Those who know history have some idea what will happen next.

Tommy Lee Jones did a great job as Moses, though he was somewhat more low-key than Agent K or Samuel Gerard. The fact that he came across so differently than those more outspoken characters proves he has acting skill.

Rip Torn gave the standout performance here as Solomon. Most of the other actors playing Americans also did a good job. I couldn't help but feel the British were portrayed as buffoons, but this was nothing like "Hogan's Heroes".

I thought a little too much time was devoted to the relationship between Adam and Ruth. I did like Ruth, though.

What is important here is that this movie makes the American Revolution personal. Regardless of how much a man wants to be free, can he actually shoot and kill another human being? What if that other human being wants to kill him? Was all the killing really necessary, or could the situation have been handled better? The face-off in Lexington that April morning was an impressive thing to watch. Perhaps no one had to die that day, but we all know that would have been unlikely. I won't say exactly what did happen there, but before the movie was over, at least one major character lay dead on the field of battle.

I would recommend this movie for high school or even junior high school history classes. The violence was not that explicit, and it was necessary to the story.

After disposing of the fact that this film was significantly under budgeted, and, in spots, more than a bit overacted, what remains is a realistically cold and existential account of the first day of the American Revolution. While the principal characters have decided to take a stand against British domination, most are a bit vague in their feelings and haven't judged exactly how far they are willing to go. Yet, the events of the Day assume a life of their own and sweep everyone along.

I was most impressed by the way the film depicts the confusion of war and the mostly improvised pattern of resistance against the redcoats. Firing is heard all around, though no one is exactly sure from where or by whom. Men move through the woods with their guns, forming ad hoc groups to ambush the roadbound British columns---whose primary mission was the confiscation of privately owned firearms. The tactics are historically accurate. They fire, and retreat to concealed positions to reload. Most of these men are reluctant warriors, resigned to an unpleasant task, yet resolved to carry it through. A fine illustration of the ultimate Check and Balance of an armed citizenry; a concept enshrined in our Constitution yet too readily dismissed by many who claim to believe in democratic principles.

Another interesting and rather rare touch is the fact that the scriptwriters made a real effort to have the characters speak as people of the time would have. I have found that in many "historical" films the actors use words, sentence structure and alliterative devices from modern times. In some instances, well intentioned editors concerned with realism overcompensate to the point where the dialogue is overly formalized, archaic, and stilted. Not so here. The actors really sound like what one would read in contemporary, primary sources describing the event. This by itself gives the film considerable educational value.

A good "war is hell" movie still suitable for younger viewers due to its lack of gratuitous gore, and a memorable portrayal of ordinary people facing up to the bold task of confronting tyranny.

"April Morning" tells of the skirmish between colonial militia and the English army at Lexington, MA which is regarded as the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. The film is a melodramatic made-for-tv drama which spends more time with fictional accounts of the April 19th battle than it does with matters of history and warfare. Obviously conceived to be palatable for prime time viewing and sell commercial products, this film is a poor American history lesson. Nonetheless, poor may be better than none at all.

This TV film is based correctly on historical events developed in April 19,1775 , beginning hostilities for a shot was fired and starting the American Revolution, skirmishes among the British troops and the colonial militia were in Lexington and Concorde(Massachusetts); the deeds are the following : The first battle of the American War of Independence was in Lexington,northwest of Boston.Anticipating a rebellion ,The British general Thomas Gage sent 800 troops to seize stores at Concord and arrest John Hancock and John Adams ,two prominent American rebels.The rebellious were warned by Paul Revere(Vlasta Vrana).An advance party under Major Pitcairn encountered a party of about 50 Minutemen ,American rebel militia troops,on Lexington Common.They refused to disperse when ordered to do so,and Pitcairn ordered his troops to open fire. Eight Minutemen were killed and the remainder retired.Fervants patriots(Tommy Lee Jones,Chad Lowe and Robert Urich) against redcoats were led by Salomon Chandler(Rip Torn). The British party turned back for Concord and was later ambushed ;it was only saved by reinforcements sent out from Concord .The total losses in two actions were 73 British killed and 174 wounded,49 Americans killed and 39 wounded.

The movie is a good adaptation upon the notorious historic events and based on a Howard Fast's(Spartacus) novel . The film is produced by Robert Halmi Jr from ¨Hallmark , Hall of fame¨ TV , which has produced several films and series about historical happenings and known personages , as : Cleopatra, Odyssea(Ulises), Hercules , Jason and the Argonauts, Joan of Arc, Lion in Winter( Henry II and Leonor Aquitania), Prince and pauper( Henry VIII and Edward VI ), among others . The movie is well directed by Delbert Mann (Marty). The flick will appeal to American history buffs.